Cutest Patron of the Day

My cute patron of the day was a little girl who in her tiny private school uniform came up to the reference desk to grab some kleenix. Then she waited close by my seat to ask in the highest possible pitch," Oh, I was just wondering...do librarians love to read books?" Her mother pushed her along saying, "Come on..." and I told her, "Yes, I do love to read books!" She was so little! So cute!

That Dragon, Cancer

I heard of this indie game about a little boy who has cancer that started out on kickstarter, was successful on it and now the game is done. It has some controversy because of the subject, and I think some people weren't able to handle an emotional video game like this so instead took to bash it. It is to my understanding that the subject of cancer is not something we should be seeing in games. I guess some just want all the games to remain the same and never evolve. Lots of negative things happen to people all the time, and are we supposed to just not ever talk about it, or express how we feel about it in a new medium, to deal with the pain of the loss of a loved one, ever?

Now, I haven't played That Dragon, Cancer yet, but I am looking forward to playing it and here's why… I love playing video games where I am immersed into the emotions of the characters or storyline. I play games like Journey, Never Alone, Rain- all games which had me from the beginning because of the whole package (beautiful music, low lighting mixed in with contrasting light, feelings of hope for the character) These types of games also seem to have a "bigger picture" type of message which  makes me feel like the game showed me something I never noticed before about life, and death. Especially when I am trying to understand why so many people around me are dying of cancer, and I feel like we do need to talk about cancer more to help each other.

I know this game might make me feel sad. Maybe it will be depressing because it is about cancer and death, and the little boy we already know dies. All I can hope for is that this little boy's parents, who developed the game as a way to cope with their loss, can find some comfort.

Wonderful World of Disney Games!

For this blog, I will be shortly reviewing video games, along with some other titles that may be of interest to those who like these games.

Disney Epic Mickey Wii game

Mickey has gotten into a painting mess, and now has his magic brush to make everything right. The first thing I noticed was how dark this Disney game was. It had a darker mood and was a little bit more challenging than another Disney character filled game- Kingdom Hearts. The controls were a little interesting, especially with the nunchuk to navigate Mickey around. It was difficult for me to control Mickey whenever the camera angles would change, but it was done for artistic value. It was funny how Mickey opens treasure chests like in the Zelda games. The music sounded like a Danny Elfman soundtrack, which I loved! Overall, I’d recommend this game to anyone who would love seeing Mickey Mouse go on a magical action adventure inspired by real Disney cartoons.







 The Nightmare before Christmas DVD

Not only is this a great Halloween movie, but it is also a dark and unusual Christmas movie.











  Best Of Boingo CD

Before Danny Elfman did music soundtracks for Tim Burton movies (like my favorites Edward Scissorhands , Batman Collection , Pee-Wee's Big Adventure) he also was apart of an eccentric 80's group. 










Alice's Adventures in Wonderland ; And, Through the Looking Glass Book

The original and sequel to Alice in Wonderland’s magical story by Lewis Carroll.











 Kingdom Hearts Graphic novel

Those who enjoyed the game can now read about Sora while he explores a new world, meets some new friends, runs into some familiar characters, and joins a quest to help his friends and find the King! Stay tuned for Epic Mickey 2 for all consoles, as well as the 3DS coming soon!

Patron-of-the-Day

I had this cute little boy come up to me, and he was pointing at the book on display and speaking baby talk, gibberish I thought.

I asked him, " Do you want to read that book?"

I started to walk over with the book, and he started slowly walking towards me while he reached out his tiny hand, and took it.

Then he said, "Thank you."

I learned that the boy could talk, just needed something and didn’t know how to ask for it.

I overheard him tell his mom, "That nice lady over there gave me this book!"

His mom said, "She did?"

Then the boy said, "She was nice to give me this book."

And the mom said, "Yes, she was nice."

Crying Kids Are My Weakness

I feel so bad for kids who are left alone in the library looking for their parent. The other day there was a little girl crying whom I immediately walked over to. I used my gentlest voice, “Sweetie, I can help you.” I was trying to say it in a way that would allow her to feel comfortable enough so I could help her because she was obviously lost. This worked. Her eyes were so red, and she was so little that I couldn’t believe a parent could just leave her behind. She brought a toddler book that she was hugging over to my desk. We looked over some stickers in a box together as I called her mother’s name over the PA system and waited… And waited. 

Her mother came over to us from the same floor. The mother told me, “I was right over there.” She sounded mad. Hmph… if I didn’t know any better, I’d say she was even upset. I stood up and used my stern voice which I really don’t like to but when duty calls, “Well, your child was over here and was looking for you, so you need to be by your child.” Stone cold librarian face.

Why must parents leave their tiny children alone in the library? I know babysitting was not particularly in the job description, but it does make me concerned how some of these parents treat their kids. Some parents would rather ignore their own kids, drop them off at the library for hours, or have their kids walk to the library until someone picks them up, and I suppose parents think it is up to the librarians to look after the child’s wellbeing. I will not babysit your child! The public library is a very public place which means all types of people come together under one roof. Some parents (and I know this is probably not you reading this) need to take more responsibility for their children. Otherwise, I have no problem reminding those certain neglectful parents know that they are the parent, not me. 

From the time I started work, till 9pm closing, I felt like I had just gained more librarian experience than before. Maybe even some parenting experience as well.